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Acer4LO's 2008 Alpha H3 Build Thread
- Thread starter Acer4LO
- Start date
Pretty sure I do. I'll measure them when I get a chance
4speedfunk
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- 4,219
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- Tardville
A body lift can cause all kinds of issues with anything that has to connect between the body and the frame. This can include: shift cables, wiring, ground straps, hoses, steering shaft, brake lines, cooling fans, bumpers, fuel filler pipe, clutch linkage, etc. Probably not an issue for a 1” lift but, if you are considering going taller...definitely check anything that has to bridge the gap.
The H3 is a very “tightly engineered” vehicle compared to 80s-era trucks, so there may not be the slack in these items without some customization. Most of the time...these issues won’t be obvious until you get done with the installation. Years ago I put a 3” biscuit lift on an 80s GM truck and I had to adjust the t-case, clutch, fan shroud, and throttle cable. I also made filler panels for the bumpers. The biscuits ended up being the easy part! Some months later the rag joint (on the steering shaft) failed, and damn near caused a crash.
The H3 is a very “tightly engineered” vehicle compared to 80s-era trucks, so there may not be the slack in these items without some customization. Most of the time...these issues won’t be obvious until you get done with the installation. Years ago I put a 3” biscuit lift on an 80s GM truck and I had to adjust the t-case, clutch, fan shroud, and throttle cable. I also made filler panels for the bumpers. The biscuits ended up being the easy part! Some months later the rag joint (on the steering shaft) failed, and damn near caused a crash.
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Exactly! Thats why I was against doing a custom body lift setup for the H3. I know it can be done, (I remember it was done to a yellow H3) but you are setting yourself up for even more problems. Putting the custom hockey pucks and new body mount bolts are the easy part. However now you have check to make all other parts aren't negatively affected by this change. For me checking all these things are not really worth the trouble and I am afraid that I will miss somthing important that will cause problems later down the line. I think this is why Daystar only offered a 1" body lift and not a 1.5" or 2" kit.
EndeavoredH3
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 426
- Location
- Arizona
How did you go about your electric fan set up? I am trying to find a reliable setup for my H3 but havent found any thats worth the time and money. If I cant find anything ill go for keeping the clutch and adding a secondary pusher fan.
It actually came with it when I bought the truck. I haven't really messed with it yet, but here are a few pictures:
I have a manual switch to turn it off and on. The orginal owner orginally had it setup to automattically turn on once the truck got to half tempature, but I rewired it because sometimes it wouldn't turn on.
EndeavoredH3
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 426
- Location
- Arizona
It actually came with it when I bought the truck. I haven't really messed with it yet, but here are a few pictures:
I have a manual switch to turn it off and on. The orginal owner orginally had it setup to automattically turn on once the truck got to half tempature, but I rewired it because sometimes it wouldn't turn on.
Is it just me or is that a pretty small fan? Whenever I get to it I was thinking about using the Ford Taurus fan or keeping the mechanical clutch and adding a pusher fan. Arizona heat makes decisions like this challenging lol. Alas another day another project.
Meant to reply on the seat covers but forgot, thank you for that information btw.
Fixing Rubbing Problems To Fit The 38in Tires
So in order to get these bigger tires to fit, there was a number of considerations that I need to take into account and test to make sure these tires do not rub, not matter what situation I am in. Here they are listed
Front (IFS):
1.) Upwards Travel of Tire
While the tire is completely fine and does not rub against anything when the wheels are straight, the tires can travel further up into the wheel well in a number of instances. Please note that I have the Rancho 4in Lift kit and the drop brackets for the bumpstops end up pushing the OEM bumpstops against the lower A-Arm already. This works in my favor for the moment since it will not allow the tires to travel that far into the wheel well. That being said, even with this limited upwards travel, the tires will still find other ways to get close to the body. Take for example braking quickly. In this instance the nose of the truck is being pushed down as the truck de-accelerates as with any vehicle. In order to get a baseline to see how far the tires would get closer to the body, I lifted up the truck with my forklift. By lifting up the opposite rear wheel, I was able to max out the suspension and push one of the front wheels as close to the body as I could. I measured from the top of the tire to the fender lip and compared this number to when the truck is sitting normally. I found out that the tires will move 2.25 inches closer to the body. Finding this info out was some what of a relief and basically told me that I would not have to do any crazy trimming which was good to know as I proceeded.
2.) Turning The Steering Wheel All The Way
One big problem that I was having is the 38 inch tires were rubbing against the wheel well when I went to turn the tires. I was only able to turn the steering wheel about 1 rotation before I started hearing bad rubbing noises. For some reason it was even worse when I did the same thing in reverse and was only able to turn the truck 3/4 of a rotation. Now the obvious answer would be to just add more lift, but the problem was I already lifted the truck as much as I can. I got the Rancho 4in lift, daystar body lift, 2” T bar crank, and extended rear shackles. A SOA was out of the question for the moment since I still need to work on my fab skills and put some money aside for new shocks. So the answer hear was to do some subtle trimming, similar to NCH3’s build.
3.) Turning The Steering Wheel While At Max Articulation
This is similar to #2. I had to make sure that the tires would not rub when the front tires were pushed into the wheel well while at the steering wheel was turned all the way in one direction.
Rear (Solid Axle):
1.) Upwards Travel of Tire At Make Articulation
Similar to the front except with a solid axle. For this test I wanted to make the tire would not rub against the wheel well while one tire being pushed up into the wheel well while the other tire is drooping down all the way.
Fixing Rear Rubbing Problems
Rear Flex Test: Without Any Trimming Yet
Problem: Rear Quarter Panel Rubs Against Tire
Rear Quarter Panel Removed For Trimming
Flex Test Without Rear Quarter Panel To See How Much To Trim
Rear Quarter Panels Trimmed and Put Back On
So in order to get these bigger tires to fit, there was a number of considerations that I need to take into account and test to make sure these tires do not rub, not matter what situation I am in. Here they are listed
Front (IFS):
1.) Upwards Travel of Tire
While the tire is completely fine and does not rub against anything when the wheels are straight, the tires can travel further up into the wheel well in a number of instances. Please note that I have the Rancho 4in Lift kit and the drop brackets for the bumpstops end up pushing the OEM bumpstops against the lower A-Arm already. This works in my favor for the moment since it will not allow the tires to travel that far into the wheel well. That being said, even with this limited upwards travel, the tires will still find other ways to get close to the body. Take for example braking quickly. In this instance the nose of the truck is being pushed down as the truck de-accelerates as with any vehicle. In order to get a baseline to see how far the tires would get closer to the body, I lifted up the truck with my forklift. By lifting up the opposite rear wheel, I was able to max out the suspension and push one of the front wheels as close to the body as I could. I measured from the top of the tire to the fender lip and compared this number to when the truck is sitting normally. I found out that the tires will move 2.25 inches closer to the body. Finding this info out was some what of a relief and basically told me that I would not have to do any crazy trimming which was good to know as I proceeded.
2.) Turning The Steering Wheel All The Way
One big problem that I was having is the 38 inch tires were rubbing against the wheel well when I went to turn the tires. I was only able to turn the steering wheel about 1 rotation before I started hearing bad rubbing noises. For some reason it was even worse when I did the same thing in reverse and was only able to turn the truck 3/4 of a rotation. Now the obvious answer would be to just add more lift, but the problem was I already lifted the truck as much as I can. I got the Rancho 4in lift, daystar body lift, 2” T bar crank, and extended rear shackles. A SOA was out of the question for the moment since I still need to work on my fab skills and put some money aside for new shocks. So the answer hear was to do some subtle trimming, similar to NCH3’s build.
3.) Turning The Steering Wheel While At Max Articulation
This is similar to #2. I had to make sure that the tires would not rub when the front tires were pushed into the wheel well while at the steering wheel was turned all the way in one direction.
Rear (Solid Axle):
1.) Upwards Travel of Tire At Make Articulation
Similar to the front except with a solid axle. For this test I wanted to make the tire would not rub against the wheel well while one tire being pushed up into the wheel well while the other tire is drooping down all the way.
Fixing Rear Rubbing Problems
Rear Flex Test: Without Any Trimming Yet
Problem: Rear Quarter Panel Rubs Against Tire
Rear Quarter Panel Removed For Trimming
Flex Test Without Rear Quarter Panel To See How Much To Trim
Rear Quarter Panels Trimmed and Put Back On
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Final Testing
Flex Test With Wheels Fully Turned In One Direction
Tire Just Clears! Very Close, But it Fits!
Shot From Ground Looking Up. Tire Does Not Rub. Looks Better In Person.
Rear Tires Rub A Little At Max Flex. Will be resolved when I do a SOA. Will work 99% of the time though.
Done With Rubbing Problems, Not Street Ready Yet.
Well now that I am done with the rubbing problems I still have to a few more things: flash the PCM, and change the transmission shift points. I will be doing that sometime soon, but as of right now I am working on restoring the floor of the truck. I have taken all the seats out and removed the carpet.
Reminder: This is an experimental set up and has not been tested yet. Try at your own risk. I cannot recommend you do this until I can confirm this works and get some trail time with this rig.
Flex Test With Wheels Fully Turned In One Direction
Tire Just Clears! Very Close, But it Fits!
Shot From Ground Looking Up. Tire Does Not Rub. Looks Better In Person.
Rear Tires Rub A Little At Max Flex. Will be resolved when I do a SOA. Will work 99% of the time though.
Done With Rubbing Problems, Not Street Ready Yet.
Well now that I am done with the rubbing problems I still have to a few more things: flash the PCM, and change the transmission shift points. I will be doing that sometime soon, but as of right now I am working on restoring the floor of the truck. I have taken all the seats out and removed the carpet.
Reminder: This is an experimental set up and has not been tested yet. Try at your own risk. I cannot recommend you do this until I can confirm this works and get some trail time with this rig.
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owlxxx
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- Messages
- 345
- Location
- Tehachapi, CA
Awesome. The trimming looks clean.
Gadsden
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 45
- Location
- The Mitten
Really cool build. Nice work, love it.
RamRod
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- 3,914
- Location
- AB, Canada
Trimming looks great!
Have you tried to test for rub while at lower tire pressures? Might still have some trimming to do... maybe not
Sent from my SM-G935W8 using Tapatalk
Have you tried to test for rub while at lower tire pressures? Might still have some trimming to do... maybe not
Sent from my SM-G935W8 using Tapatalk
Nope it works amazing. I air down to 5 PSI and don't have any rubbing issues what so ever!
rascole
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- 2,714
- Location
- Bellflower, CA
You should measure bolts from under the head. :giggle:
RamRod
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- 3,914
- Location
- AB, Canada
Front Quick Disco Sway Bar Links
Installed the JKS 2001 Front Disconnect Sway Bar Links. Super easy to install. Simple as lining up the new ones to the old ones
(Cherokee XJ & Comanche MJ, 1984-2001, Quicker Disconnect, Fits 4.0"-6.0" Lift)
http://jksmfg.com/i-13306724-cherok...001-quicker-disconnect-fits-4-0-6-0-lift.html
I needed to buy these extra parts for it to work:
[2x] Offset Polyurethane Spacer (M03212-BK-01)
[2x] 1/2" -20 Nylock Nut (37130)
[2x] Stainless Steel Post (A1046)
[6x] Click Pin (03005)
View attachment 23113
View attachment 23117
View attachment 23118
View attachment 23114
View attachment 23115
Had to grease them up!
View attachment 23116
Done
View attachment 23119
View attachment 23120
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Links About JKS Front Discos:
Background Info: http://www.hummer4x4offroad.com/forum/showthread.php?1587-Sway-bar-disconnects
Which Model?: http://www.hummer4x4offroad.com/forum/showthread.php?12878-JKS-Front-Discos&highlight=discos
Holding Up The Swaybar: http://www.hummer4x4offroad.com/for...8-Anti-Sway-Disconnect-front&highlight=discos
General Info: http://www.hummer4x4offroad.com/forum/showthread.php?13123-Shocks-and-links&highlight=discos
Buy Now For 4in Lifted Rancho H3s: http://jksmfg.com/i-13306724-cherok...001-quicker-disconnect-fits-4-0-6-0-lift.html
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Thanks again for this info, just placed a parts order based on this post! (some parts are back ordered so it might take a while)
Gpcalero
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 253
- Location
- SW Florida
Acer, any updates recently? Has been a year since you've updated us!
Oh jeez you're right! I really should update this sometime soon. Of course I have done some upgrades and wheeling trips since last year! I am still really active with all things H3 related, I just haven't posted on here. Lately, when I have free time to work on H3 stuff, I have been making videos for the YouTube channel. Sometimes these tutorial videos that I do take 100+ hours to make which is why I only come out with them every few months lol. One of the reasons why some of the videos take so long is I try to explain everything from a newbie perspective and include much information as possible. In the future, I definitely want to do some videos on my rig and focus on specific modifications that I have done that I think others would be interested in.
DFW Spartan
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 125
- Location
- Dallas, TX
Quick question on the JKS Front Quick Disco Sway Bar Links. Wouldn't the purching the JKS 2034 give you the same result as purchasing the JKS 2001, and then buying the above extra parts to make them work? Am planning on buying the JKS 2034, and want to make sure I'm not overlooking anything obvious. Thanks in advance.
https://jksmfg.com/i-13306776-quicker-disconnect-end-links-jeep-wrangler-jk-fits-2-5-6-0-lift.html
Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk
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rascole
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- 2,714
- Location
- Bellflower, CA
DFW, from what I see you are correct. I wish I would have seen this earlier.